The Secret of the Big Chair
by priskie
Summary: A Silly EndGame add on... Captain Janeway borrows a leaf out of the Admiral's book...


Disclaimer: Paramount owns all things Star Trek. I just dream about them.  
  
Spoilers: Endgame  
  
Note: A silly short story. End Game add on. Something mentioned in various complaints about how star trek eps are written kept sticking in my brain.  
  
The Secret of the Big Chair  
  
Kathryn Janeway stared morosely at the viewscreen. Less than ten light years away lay the Holy Grail. Seven years of struggle and searching, battling alone through a hostile quadrant, her crew driven by adrenaline and the promise of an impossible dream - to get home. This dream was now realised. Her own promise to the crew fulfilled. They were HOME.  
  
Looking around at her bridge crew, Kathryn saw no traces of the fatigue they must all feel. Only shinning excitement in their eyes, an elated grin plastered on their faces. She should feel the same. She should be pleased. They were HOME.  
  
For seventy thousand light years, this battered collection of bulkheads and conduits had been HER home. The people - a ragtag confusion of Starfleet, maquis, aliens and the assimilated - they were HER family. She had dedicated every fibre of her being, every ounce of her soul to their survival. And in the space of just ten light years, she would lose them. They would return to their families, their friends, their own homes. Thank you Captain, they would say, Have a nice life.  
  
Kathryn let her gaze fall onto the man at the helm. The strong shoulders she had often leaned against, the solid comfortable presence she had come to count on. With all that happened, she hadn't thought much about her conversation in the corridor with Admiral Janeway, but now it returned to haunt her. Chakotay - married to Seven.  
  
She shouldn't have been surprised, all the signs were there : Chakotay teasing her about her hologram boyfriend in an almost brotherly way; He and Seven stuck on a planet of primitives for several days after a shuttle crash; Him turning down her lunch and dinner offers saying that he "had made plans"; the Doctor's vague comments about Seven and a Chakotay hologram. It had been a busy time, and Kathryn had shrugged all these observations aside. What a fool she was.  
  
If only I could do it again... She thought sadly.  
  
Then again, she did "do it all again" didn't she? At least Admiral Janeway did - going back to save the Voyager crew. So why can't Captain Janeway go back and save Kathryn?  
  
But how? The Admiral's device was obtained in her own timeline, one which no longer existed. Kathryn couldn't know, 22 years from now, if the same device could be found again. She couldn't very well go through the rest of her life looking for this thing. It was too uncertain, she may never find it.  
  
No, there had to be a way, a sure fire way. Something she could do NOW, before she became old and bitter. Frustrated, Kathryn thumped the command chair with her fist.  
  
It rattled.  
  
She looked at it curiously. The top of the armrest seem loose. It had been a harrowing ride down the transwarp corridor and out of the Borg Sphere and it seemed the Captain's Chair was another casualty.  
  
Lifting up the dislodged section, Kathryn noticed a button. Bright red nestled within a smooth black recess. It wasn't like the standard Starfleet consoles with lit panels, the button was a round contoured, similar to something she once saw in Tom's Captain Proton programme.  
  
Like a curious child, Kathryn found an irresistible urge to push it. She glanced round guiltily, but her actions were unnoticed by the crew. Earth had appeared on the viewscreen and everyone, including Seven, was mesmerized by the growing blue orb.  
  
A bright red button. In Her Chair. Where she sat every single day. How had she not known about this before? And more importantly, what did it do?  
  
Captain, we're approaching Earth. Chakotay's announcement interrupted Kathryn's thoughts. Going into synchronized orbit.  
  
A wave of panic hit Kathryn. They were here, they were home, and in minutes they would leave her. Once she left she might never get back on this ship. If she was going to hit that button she'd better do it now.  
  
But what if it was a self-destruct button? Could she risk blowing everyone up just as they reached home?  
  
Oh, What the Hell! She exclaimed out loud. Everyone turned and stared, including Chakotay. Kathryn met his gaze defiantly and Pushed The Button.  
  
The world flashed white.  
  
The ship lurched in several directions.  
  
Kathryn tumbled heavily onto the floor.  
  
Oh God, what had she done?  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
"Captain! Captain! Are you alright?" Tom Paris' voice sliced sharply through her pounding headache.  
  
"What are you doing here?" Kathryn growled. "Get back to Sickbay and look after your wife and child."  
  
A pair of puzzled blue eyes stared blankly back at her. "My - what?"  
  
As her vision cleared, Kathryn realized there was something different about Tom. He seemed thinner and - she frowned - younger?  
  
"Captain, are you alright?" Paris repeated, concern on his youthful face.  
  
Kathryn's eyes darted suspiciously around the bridge, resting on a prone form in front of her.  
  
She gasped as she turned the body over, recognizing the handsome face, the dark hair peppered with gray, her hands fumbling for a pulse beneath the red command uniform, knowing she would find none.  
  
Commander Cavit was indeed dead.  
  
"Captain, there's something out there." Harry's voice filled with panic.  
  
Kathryn faced him with dawning realization. She felt the back of her head and was reassured by the bun.  
  
"Ensign. Turn on the view screen and you'll find an array outside. We're in the Delta Quadrant, 70,000 lightyears from home." She turned from Harry's stupefied expression to Tom, who was leaning over the helmsman. "Forget it Paris, Stadi is dead. You and Kim get down to Sick Bay, they'll need you there. I'm heading to Engineering, the Warp Core is about to breach."  
  
Kathryn marched confidently into the turbo lift. As it hummed to life, she let her Captain's mask slip. She leaned back against the wall, taking deep breaths as her mind grasped what had happening. She was back. In the Delta Quadrant, at the moment when the Caretaker first pulled them in. This was the beginning of the Adventure.  
  
How? Then Kathryn remembered The Button.  
  
"Halt Turbo Lift." She barked as it jerked to a stop obediently.  
  
Kathryn frowned. I wonder. she thought.  
  
"Computer. Is there a button hidden in the right armrest of the Captain's chair?" She asked, trying not to feel foolish. Could a computer laugh at you?  
  
"Affirmative." Replied the automated voice, making Kathryn's heart pound.  
  
"Computer, what is the purpose of this button?" She asked cautiously.  
  
"It is the RESET BUTTON."  
  
Kathryn Janeway exhaled. Resume Turbo Lift. She commanded serenely.  
  
The blue eyes danced with anticipation as a broad grin spread over her face. The next seven years would be MOST interesting.  
  
-End- 


End file.
